London's 35-year acting career began in films in 1944 and included playing opposite Gary Cooper in Man of the West (1958) and Robert Mitchum in The Wonderful Country (1959). She achieved continuing success in the TV medical drama Emergency! (1972–1979), co-starring her real-life husband, Bobby Troup, and produced by her ex-husband, Jack Webb, in which London played the female lead role of nurse Dixie McCall. She and Randolph Mantooth, who played one-half of her medical students, a paramedic, in the series, were very close to her family, until her death in 2000.
Born in Santa Rosa, California, she was the daughter of Jack and Josephine Peck, who were a vaudeville song-and-dance team. When she was fourteen the family moved to Los Angeles. Shortly after that, she began appearing in movies. She graduated from the Hollywood Professional High School in 1945.
London began singing under the name Gayle Peck in public in her teens before appearing in a film. She was discovered by talent agent Sue Carol (wife of actor Alan Ladd), while working as an elevator operator. Her early film career, however, did not include any singing roles.
London recorded 32 albums in a career that began in 1955 with a live performance at the 881 Club in Los Angeles. Billboard named her the most popular female vocalist for 1955, 1956, and 1957. She was the subject of a 1957 Life cover article in which she was quoted as saying, "It's only a thimbleful of a voice, and I have to use it close to the microphone. But it is a kind of oversmoked voice, and it automatically sounds intimate."
London's debut recordings were for the Bethlehem Records label. While shopping for a record deal, she recorded four tracks that would later be included on the compilation album Bethlehem's Girlfriends in 1955. Bobby Troup backed London on the album, for which London recorded the standards "Don't Worry About Me", "Motherless Child", "A Foggy Day", and "You're Blasé".
London's most famous single, "Cry Me a River", was written by her high-school classmate Arthur Hamilton and produced by Troup. The recording became a million-seller after its release in December 1955 and also sold on reissue in April 1983 from the attention brought by a Mari Wilson cover. London performed the song in the film The Girl Can't Help It (1956), and her recording gained later attention in the films Passion of Mind (2000) and V for Vendetta (2006). The song "Yummy Yummy Yummy" was featured on the HBO television series Six Feet Under and appears on its soundtrack album. London's "Must Be Catchin'" was featured in the 2011 premiere episode of the ABC series Pan Am. Her last recording was "My Funny Valentine" for the soundtrack of the Burt Reynolds film Sharky's Machine (1981).
Other popular singles include "Hot Toddy", "Daddy", and "Desafinado". Recordings such as "Go Slow" epitomized her career style: her voice is slow, smoky, and playfully sensual.
She was married to Jack Webb, of Dragnet fame. Her obvious beauty and self-poise (she was a pinup girl prized by GIs during World War II) contrasted with his pedestrian appearance and stiff-as-a-board acting technique (much parodied by impersonators). This unlikely pairing arose from his and her love for jazz; their marriage lasted from July 1947 to November 1953. They had two daughters, one who was killed in a traffic accident in the 1990s and one who survived London. In 1954, having become somewhat reclusive after her divorce from Jack Webb, she met jazz composer and musician Bobby Troup at a club on La Brea Blvd. They married on December 31, 1959 and remained married until Troup's death in February 1999. Together, they had one daughter and twin sons.
London suffered a stroke in 1995, and was in poor health until her death in Encino, California, at the age of seventy-four, survived by four of her five children. She died on18th October 2000, and was buried in Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles.
You've Changed -
Julie London Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
This thought that's been a-stealing
Through my brain
Is not to be ignored
But to really tell the truth
Though I'm not a well known sleuth
I honestly believe
You've changed
That sparkle in your eye is gone
Your smile is just a careless yawn
You're breaking my heart
You've changed
You've changed
You're kisses now are so blase
You're bored with me in every way
I can't understand
You've changed
You've forgotten the words 'I love you'
Each memory that we've shared
You ignore every star above you
I can't realize you've ever cared
You've changed
You're not the angel I once knew
No need to tell me that we're through
It's all over now
You've changed
The lyrics of Julie London's song "You've Changed" express the realization of a lover that their significant other has lost interest in them. The song's opening stanza sets the tone for the rest of the song: "I've an awful feeling that this thought that's been a-stealing through my brain is not to be ignored." The singer then admits to their suspicion that their partner is bored with their relationship, "But to really tell the truth, though I'm not a well-known sleuth, I honestly believe that you are bored."
Throughout the song, the lyrics paint a picture of the loss of passion and connection in the relationship. The "sparkle" in the partner's eye is gone, and their smiles are now "just a careless yawn." The kisses are "blase," and the singer feels that their partner is bored with them in every way. The chorus repeats the title phrase, emphasizing the finality of the change and the realization that the relationship is over.
The song is a poignant reflection on loss and the inevitability of change, which makes it a timeless classic. The pain of losing someone we love or care for is something that we all experience at some point in our lives. The song's somber tone and evocative lyrics capture this feeling perfectly- the sense that while something has been lost, life goes on.
Line by Line Meaning
I've an awful feeling that
I have a bad feeling that
This thought that's been a-stealing
This idea that's been sneaking around
Through my brain
In my mind
Is not to be ignored
Shouldn't be disregarded
But to really tell the truth
To truly say
Though I'm not a well known sleuth
Although I'm not a famous detective
I honestly believe
I genuinely think
That you are bored
That you're uninterested
You've changed
You are different now
That sparkle in your eye is gone
The twinkle in your eye is missing
Your smile is just a careless yawn
Your grin is an uninterested gesture
You're breaking my heart
You're hurting me deeply
You've changed
You are different now
You're kisses now are so blase
Your kisses are unenthusiastic
You're bored with me in every way
You're disinterested in me in every sense
I can't understand
I can't comprehend
You've changed
You are different now
You've forgotten the words 'I love you'
You no longer say 'I love you'
Each memory that we've shared
Every experience we've had together
You ignore every star above you
You pay no attention to the stars above you
I can't realize you've ever cared
I can't believe you ever felt affection for me
You've changed
You are different now
You're not the angel I once knew
You're not the perfect person I thought you were
No need to tell me that we're through
There's no need to inform me that our relationship is over
It's all over now
Everything is finished now
You've changed
You are different now
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: JESSE REESE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind